Do you sometimes. Music Variations on America Charles Ives. Building Blocks. Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

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1 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Listen! A Guide to the ATLANTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Young People s Concerts Do you sometimes get tired of doing the same old thing every day? Do you wish you could go to a new place, meet some new people or see new sights? Everyone has that feeling at times. Human beings need variety in their lives to be happy. MUSICAL FORM: The Building Blocks of Music Variations on America Charles Ives Fugue, from Schwanda, the Bagpiper Jaromir Weinberger Symphony No. 7, 3rd Movement Ludwig van Beethoven Concerto for Orchestra, 4th movement Béla Bartók Peachtree Street, from City Scape Jennifer Higdon Symphony No. 9, 1st movement Dmitri Shostakovich

2 Too much variety can be just as bad. What if you never knew what to expect next? Without some routine in our lives, we feel confused and out of sorts. It seems we re happiest when we have a little of both a pleasant routine with a few nice surprises along the way. The arts also need repeated things and some variety. Look at the painting on the following page. What is repeated? Repeating something holds the painting together. It creates unity. How does the artist provide a change? Change creates variety. Without some variety, the painting would be very dull. The artist obeyed the rule that good design always has both unity and variety. Composers build music from ideas. A musical idea is usually a melody. Once they have a musical idea, composers then have to make a choice. They can either repeat the first idea or come up with a new one. Good musical design also has a balance between repeated things and new things. Repeating in music is even more important than in painting. Music Percussion Piano French Horns Harp Clarinets Second Violins Flutes First Violins 2

3 happens over time. It s easy to forget a melody that you hear only once. Composers repeat melodies to help you remember them. Unity and variety are the building blocks of classical music. They help create musical form (a plan for the music). Composers use some musical forms so often that everyone knows them. Now it s time for you to learn them. When you come to Symphony Hall to hear the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, you will hear music that combines unity and variety. You ll hear some of the musical forms that make classical music so interesting. Artist: Nicole Price Title: Connected Timpani Trumpets Trombones Tubas Bassoons Oboes Basses Violas Cellos 3

4 Variations on America Charles Ives ( ) W hat makes music American? Is it the melody? Is it the rhythm? This music will help you decide. About The Music Two things make this music very American. First, the theme, or main melody, of the piece is a wellknown American patriotic tune, My Country, Tis of Thee. Secondly, the music is full of new ideas. Theme and variations has been a popular musical form for centuries. Often, the composer borrows the theme from another composer. In this music, the theme is a tune we all know. There is only one theme in a theme and variations piece. The composer must think of many ways to add variety without writing a new theme. The theme and its variations are played one after another. A theme and variations map would look like this: A A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 etc. A theme can have any number of variations. About the COMPOSER Charles Ives was called the founding father of American music. He liked to make up his own rules for music. His father, a band director, taught him to experiment with sounds. He became known for his unusual musical ideas. Charles began composing music when he was very young. One of his first compositions was a piece for his cat s funeral. Charles wrote this piece for the organ when he was only seventeen. (An organ has a keyboard like a piano, but the sound is made when air is forced through pipes.) He had a job as organist at a local church. William Schuman, another American composer, rewrote the piece for orchestra in

5 Activity #1: Create a set of variations on a nonmusical theme. Here are some ideas for your theme: 1) walking, 2) saying hello to someone, 3) a sentence (try The lazy cow stood in a sunny pasture. ). Create a list of the ways you could change each theme or work with your group to make up variations. Perform your theme and variations. Activity #2: This is the theme of Variations on America. Sing the tune, and clap the rhythm as you sing. Next, silently think through the song while you clap the rhythm. What changes do you hear in the song when you sing it? When you think through the song silently and clap the rhythm, can you tell what stays the same? My coun-try, tis of thee Sweet land of li-ber-ty, Of thee I sing. Land where my fa-thers died, Land of the pil-grims pride, From e-very moun-tainside Let freedom ring! Activity #3: Make a list of ways a composer can change a theme. Now listen to the Ives theme and its four variations. As you hear each one, decide how the theme is changed and fill in the chart below. Instruments Melody Rhythm Tempo Meter Dynamics Harmony Mood Introduction Theme (A) Variation 1 (A 1 ) Interlude Variation 2 (A 2 ) Variation 3 (A 3 ) Variation 4 (A 4 ) Coda 5

6 Fugue, from Schwanda, the Bagpiper Jaromir Weinberger ( ) D o you know the story about the Pied Piper of Hamelin? He played his tunes, and all the children followed him. He created a very unhappy scene when he took all of the children away. In this story, Schwanda, the Bagpiper, makes trouble, too. He also gets out of trouble with his magic music. About The Music This happy piece was written for a scene in an opera. An opera is a story told through music. The story of Schwanda comes from Bohemia, now a part of the Czech Republic. In this story, Schwanda has been in some very big trouble. He plays this fugue (pronounced fyoog ) to celebrate when his friend Babinsky helps him to escape. Schwanda, the Bagpiper is Weinberger s most famous opera. It is still popular today. It has been performed over 4000 times in more than 20 languages. This fugue is one of the most popular pieces from that opera. About The COMPOSER Jaromir Weinberger was born in Prague in He loved the music of his native country. He used the folk music of that country in his operas. He studied music in the music schools of Prague and Leipzig. Just before World War II, Weinberger left his beloved country. He came to the United States in In America, he sometimes wrote music based on American folk tunes. 6

7 Like theme and variations, the fugue form is based on one theme. The theme of a fugue is repeated many times also. In theme and variations form, the repeats of the theme follow one after another. In a fugue, the repeats overlap each other. It sounds like the themes are chasing each other. In fact, the word fugue comes from fuga which means flight. In the Exposition section of the music, you hear each voice or instrument play the theme (called the subject or the answer). When each voice finishes the theme, it then plays other music, written to be played along with the subject. The composer varies the theme in the Development section of the fugue. To really enjoy a fugue, you must learn to listen to more than one thing at a time. This is a map of the Fugue from Schwanda, the Bagpiper: Exposition: 1. Violas/Theme (Subject) 2. Cellos/Theme (Answer) 3. Violins/Theme (Subject) 4. Bass/Theme (Answer) Development: The theme is varied. The fugue ends with the brass instruments playing the theme slower and louder. You might have noticed that this is like a round. Sing a favorite round like Row, Row, Row Your Boat. Notice how the voices stack up as each new group enters. Activity: This is the theme of Schwanda s Fugue. After you become familiar with the theme, listen to the entire piece and follow the map. You will hear the theme repeated over and over. How does the composer create variety? 7

8 Symphony No. 7, 3rd Movement Ludwig van Beethoven ( ) This piece of music will make you want to dance. Beethoven called his 7th Symphony his most excellent symphony. About The Music Beethoven wrote nine symphonies. A symphony has four movements or sections. Most symphony movements can stand alone as separate pieces. Each one has its own musical form. Sometimes movements are in theme and variations form. Some movements include a fugue. The third movement of many symphonies is in three-part or ABA form. In theme and variations form and in fugues, composers use one theme over and over. In ABA form, a completely new theme (B) is introduced to give the piece variety. The repeat of the A section at the end brings unity to the music. The third movement of Beethoven s 7th Symphony uses a B theme. He then repeats the first two sections of the third movement (A and B) before he ends it with the A melody. A map of this movement would be ABABA. The name of this form is scherzo and trio. The A theme is the scherzo section. The B theme is the trio section. 8

9 Activity #1: Download your own copy of a listening map of this piece from Follow the listening map as you listen to the 3rd Movement of Beethoven s Symphony No. 7. Activity #2: Use the Building Your Music Memory page in the back of the book to describe the A and B sections. Compare and contrast the themes. You ll need to listen more than once. About The COMPOSER Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, Germany. His father made his living as a musician. Ludwig s father taught him how to play the piano and the violin. Ludwig attended school for only a few years. All of Ludwig s time was spent learning how to play and write music. His father wanted him to be a famous musician. He made Ludwig practice for long hours. People who knew the family said that they saw Beethoven standing at the piano crying and playing. Ludwig did become a famous musician. People crowded the concert halls to hear him perform. He was among the first composers to make a living with his writing. Sadly, Ludwig became deaf later in life. Despite this, he wrote music that earned him a place among the giants of classical music. 9

10 Concerto for Orchestra, 4th movement Béla Bartók ( ) Beethoven and Bartók lived one century apart. They both obeyed the rules for good musical form. They created both unity and variety in their music. About The Music Bartók s Concerto for Orchestra was one of the last pieces of music he wrote. Béla left Hungary when World War II began. The Nazis had taken over his country. He was living in New York and was very ill. He was asked to write a piece for orchestra. The desire to write this music made him feel much better for a while. He wrote the Concerto in only seven weeks. He died nine months later. In a concerto, a musician usually stands in front of the orchestra to play a solo part. This concerto is unusual because there is no star soloist. Bartók treats each of the regular orchestra musicians like soloists. This is a showpiece for the whole orchestra. Activity #1: In this movement, Bartók uses three themes A, B and C. The C theme is borrowed from the 7th Symphony of composer Dmitri Shostakovich. Bartók heard the Shostakovich symphony on the radio while he was working on his Concerto. He didn t like it very much. He decided to make fun of that piece in this movement. How can you tell when a composer is making fun of a tune? You ll soon find out as you listen to this piece. As you listen, write down the solo instruments. Look at the orchestra picture at the beginning of this book. Decide which instrument is playing. Theme A B (A) C B A Solo Instrument(s) 10

11 Activity #2: Use the Building Your Musical Memory page in the back of this book to describe each of the three themes. Then answer these questions: 1. How does the composer provide unity in this movement? (What stays the same?) 2. How does the composer create variety? (What changes?) About the COMPOSER Béla Bartók was born in Hungary. His parents were teachers and amateur musicians. Béla showed his talent at an early age. At four years old, he could play 40 songs on the piano. Béla was shy and not very healthy. His father died when Béla was only seven. His mother moved the family often. She was looking for jobs. She also wanted Béla and his sister to have good schools. Béla began writing music when he was only ten years old. He went to music school to become a piano soloist. Later, Béla became very interested in the folk music of his country. He collected folk music by listening to the people around him. The folk music of his native land inspired his own music. 11

12 Peachtree Street, from City Scape Jennifer Higdon ( ) This music is about our hometown. You can almost see the busy scenes on Peachtree Street, the Main Street of Atlanta. About The Music Peachtree Street is the name of this music. It is the 3rd movement of a long piece called City Scape. When you come to hear the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, you will be on Peachtree Street. Watch carefully as you ride down Peachtree Street. You will see lots of traffic lights. You will probably see lots of people and cars moving down the street. Peachtree is a busy street. This Peachtree Street movement is Jennifer Higdon s memory of the busy spots and the quiet spots on that long street. The first two movements of City Scape are also about Atlanta. The first movement is called Skyline. The second movement is called river sings a song to the trees. Jennifer was thinking about her old hometown when she wrote this music. About the COMPOSER Jennifer Higdon was born in Brooklyn, New York. When she was one year old, her family moved to Atlanta. Her mother and father took Jennifer to hear the Atlanta Symphony for the first time when she was eight years old. She attended the ballet, museums, film festivals and even rock concerts in Piedmont Park. Her parents loved all of those things. They wanted Jennifer to see and hear it all. Jennifer played percussion instruments. She also became a very good flute player. She decided to study music in college. She also wanted to learn how to conduct an orchestra and write music. One of her teachers was Robert Spano. Mr. Spano is now the Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Jennifer makes her living writing music. She also teaches other people how to write music. You will hear that she writes special parts for her two favorites flute and percussion. 12

13 Activity #1: First, you should listen to all of Peachtree Street. Do you hear busy places and calm places? Try to make your own map of the music. Start with just two words: busy and calm. There are SIX themes in Peachtree Street. Ms. Higdon wrote this piece in Rondo Form. That means that the A theme is repeated after every new theme. The map of the piece is A-B-A-C-A-D-A-E-A-F-A. Write down your busy and calm ideas below. Try to decide which instruments are the main instruments in each theme. You ll know you re hearing the A theme when you hear the full orchestra. THEME Loud & Busy or Calm & Quiet Instruments Theme A Full orchestra Theme B Theme A Theme C Theme A Theme D Theme A Theme E Theme A Theme F Theme A Activity #2: Look at the Building Your Musical Memory chart. Which musical elements does Jennifer Higdon change to create a busy or calm mood? The repeat of the A theme provides unity. Is the music unified by other elements that stay the same across all of the other themes? 13

14 Symphony No. 9, 1st movement Dmitri Shostakovich ( ) This music is full of fun and humor. It was written at the end of World War II in Instead of a great victory symphony, Shostakovich wrote a playful piece of music. This was his way to celebrate the end of war. About The Music The first movement of a symphony has a very special form. It is called sonata-allegro form. Sonata-allegro form is different from any other musical form. At first, it sounds like three-part form. If you listen carefully, though, you ll hear that the middle section of the music is not new. It contains old themes changed in some way. This form has two large parts. The first part is called the Exposition. In the exposition, you hear the main theme (A) and a second theme (B). The A theme is in the home key. The second theme moves away from the home key. In the second part, the composer develops the themes. The key is always changed, often many times. The melodies may be decorated or even turned upside down. At the end of the Development, you know that something important is about to happen. You can tell that the music is moving back to the home key. You feel very satisfied when you hear the main theme again in the home key. The repeat of the main theme is called the Recapitulation. About the COMPOSER Dmitri Shostakovich lived through two terrible wars. He was a very quiet person. It seems that all of his feelings came out in his music. After World War II, the Soviet government in his native Russia did not like some of Dmitri s music. They thought it did not display Soviet ideas. He had to apologize and write music that the leaders liked. He never forgot how to write great music, though. His fifteen symphonies are especially dramatic and full of feeling.

15 Activity: Follow this map of the 1st movement of the Shostakovich 9th Symphony. The recapitulation of the themes is not an exact repeat, but you ll know them when you hear them. (Read left to right.) I. EXPOSITION: A theme: a b a strings oboe strings B theme: a a b a piccolo piccolo woodwinds brass II. DEVELOPMENT: A theme (new keys): a b a high strings high strings low strings upside down B theme (new keys): a b woodwinds horn and bassoon RECAPITULATION: A theme (home key): a b a strings strings bassoon B theme: a b violin solo trombones A theme: B theme: A theme: a clarinet solo a high strings a clarinet, oboe and trumpet small fragment 15

16 Building Your Musical Memory Answer these questions so you can remember each theme. Write your answers in the chart below. 1. Which instruments are playing? Does that stay the same or do new instruments enter on the same theme? List them in the order you hear them. Do you hear one instrument, several instruments or the full orchestra play the theme? Does that change? 2. Is the tempo slow or fast? 3. Is the music loud or soft? Are there changes in the dynamics? 4. Is the articulation of the melody smooth and flowing (legato) or disconnected (staccato)? 5. Is the melody line curved or jagged? Does it move stepwise or by leaps from one note to the next? 6. Is the rhythm even or uneven? Are the accents on the beat or off the beat (syncopation)? 7. Is the meter duple (sets of 2 beats) or triple (sets of 3 beats) or a combination? 8. What is the mood of the theme? (Happy, sad, spooky, wild, calm, etc.) Does the mood change? Which musical elements above are changed to create a new mood? Theme 1. Instruments (Tone Color) 2. Tempo 3. Volume (Dynamics) Make a list Slow/Fast Loud/Soft 16

17 More Questions to Help You Describe the Music 9. Is there more than one theme? How many? If there is only one theme, how does the composer create variety? What is repeated for unity? (Same = Unity / Different = Variety) 10. What do you hear that helps you know that a new section of the music is about to begin? (Does it get slower or faster, become softer or louder? Are there big loud chords or a pause?) 11. Make a map of the events in the entire piece of music. (A A1 A2 A3; A B A; A B A B A; A B C B A; A B A C A D A E A F A, etc.) Does this musical form have a name? (Theme and Variations; Fugue; Three-part Form; Rondo; Sonata-allegro) 12. Is there an Introduction? Is there a Coda? (Sometimes a composer writes an Introduction at the beginning before starting Theme A. Sometimes a composer writes a Coda tail to end the piece. Small pieces of the themes may be used in both the Introduction and the Coda.) 4. Articulation 5. Melody 6. Rhythm 7. Meter 8. Mood Legato/Staccato Curved/Jagged Even/Uneven Duple/Triple You decide 17

18 Meet the Orchestra The orchestra is made up of many people playing various instruments. These musicians work together with the conductor to play music for students who attend the ASO Young People s Concerts. Below, four ASO musicians answer some frequently asked questions. What is it like to be a musician in an orchestra? Kenn Wagner, ASO Violin: A very difficult job, but there is a lot of variety in the music, and my ASO colleagues are wonderful! Tell us about your first important musical experience. Gloria Jones, ASO Bass: In 3rd grade, a group of string players came and demonstrated instruments.i knew then that I HAD to play violin. I begged so hard for a violin. Then, I switched to bass at age 12. I begged hard for that too! How often do you have to practice? Stephen Wilson, ASO Trombone: I play the trombone every day, seven days a week. I practice 2-3 hours a day, four days a week. What advice do you have for students who would like to be professional musicians? Juan de Gomar, ASO Contrabassoon: If playing professionally is something you want to do, it has to be burning your soul. You can't just want to do it; you have to need to do it. 18

19 ATLANTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA EDUCATION STAFF: Susan Merritt, Director of Education Brenda Pruitt, Assistant Director of Education Melanie Darby, Coordinator of Youth and Family Programs A Note to Parents: We are delighted that your child will have an opportunity to visit Symphony Hall to hear the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. This student guide is part of the extensive preparation materials provided for educators to use in preparing young people for the concert. The teacher materials are available for your perusal on the Internet at The theme of the ASO Young People s Concert is Musical Form. Students will explore the element of form in music how it is created and how it conveys meaning. In subsequent years, students will learn about other elements of music. We hope you will encourage your school leaders to take advantage of these future concerts. The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra provides other opportunities for you to share the joy of music with your child. The Sunday afternoon Family Concert series is designed to be an entertaining learning experience for the whole family. Also on Sunday afternoons, you and your children may enjoy concerts performed by the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra. This talented group of student musicians ranging in age from 13 to 18 performs three subscription concerts a year. We hope you ll take advantage of these and other concerts to instill in your child a love of orchestral music a lifelong gift that your child will treasure. 19

20 THE ASO COCA-COLA FAMILY CONCERTS October 26, 2003 Halloween Spooktacular! William Shakespeare, conductor Lee Harper & Dancers 1:30 & 3:30pm February 8, 2004 Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs & Ham and Gertrude McFuzz Jere Flint, Conductor Alliance Theatre Company 1:30 & 3:30pm March 21, 2004 Babar the Elephant Jere Flint, conductor Atlanta Ballet 1:30 & 3:30pm April 25, 2004 The Tempest Jere Flint, conductor Underground Railway Theatre Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra 1:30 & 3:30pm Sponsored by: with support from Publix Super Markets ATLANTA SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRA CONCERTS Jere Flint, Music Director Fall Concert November 23, :00pm Winter Concert March 7, :00pm Spring Concert May 9, :00pm Sponsored by: with support from Equifax and the Lanie & Ethel Foundation ASO YOUNG PEOPLES CONCERTS ARE SUPPORTED IN PART BY: The William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund, The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Education and Outreach Fund, the First Union Foundation and The Goizueta Foundation. We are grateful to these organizations for their continued support of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. An AOL Time Warner Company To order tickets to these and other ASO concerts, please call the Woodruff Arts Center Box Office: Order Online: For Group and Student rates for these concerts call